Paula Barila Bolopa, born in 1981 or 1982, is a swimmer from Equatorial Guinea

Equatorial Guinea

Equatorial Guinea, officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea where the capital Malabo is situated.Annobón is the southernmost island of Equatorial Guinea and is situated just south of the equator. Bioko island is the northernmost point of Equatorial Guinea. Between the two islands and to the...

. She was one of two Equatorial Guinean swimmers to compete

Equatorial Guinea at the 2000 Summer Olympics

Equatorial Guinea competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia.Swimmer Eric Moussambani achieved international fame when he struggled through a 100 metre swim, alone in the pool after the other two competitors were disqualified...

 at the 2000 Summer Olympics

2000 Summer Olympics

The Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games or the Millennium Games/Games of the New Millennium, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...

 in Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, the other being Eric Moussambani

Eric Moussambani

Eric Moussambani Malonga is a swimmer from Equatorial Guinea. Nicknamed "Eric the Eel" by the media after the name first appeared in an article by Craig Lord in The Times newspaper in London, Moussambani won brief international fame at the 2000 Summer Olympics when he swam his heat of the...

.

Following Moussambani's struggling but courageous performance in the men's 100 metres freestyle event, the media turned their attention to his female compatriot. According to The Telegraph

The Daily Telegraph

The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...

, "the spectator gallery was almost full as the news spread that a female Eric was making an appearance." A correspondent for The Times

The Times

The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...

reported:

Paula Barila Bolopa, still dripping wet from her swim, was under siege. Tape recorders were being thrust in her face and an interpreter was translating her comments from Spanish for American television stations. Somebody passed her a mobile phone so she could talk live to a radio presenter in Madrid and when she was asked whether she had signed any autographs since fame embraced her, she furrowed her brow in indignation. “Muchos,” she said. She and Celebrity had quickly become fast friends.

Barila Bolopa competed in the women's 50 metres freestyle, and finished last in her heat with a time of 01:03.97, which was double the second-worst time, and reportedly the slowest time in Olympic history for that event. She received loud support and encouragement from spectators.

Barila Bolopa gained entry to the Olympics without meeting the minimum qualification requirements via a wildcard

Wild card (sports)

The term wild card refers broadly to a tournament or playoff berth awarded to an individual or team that has not qualified through normal play.-International sports:...

 draw designed to encourage developing countries

Developing country

A developing country, also known as a less-developed country, is a nation with a low level of material well-being. Since no single definition of the term developing country is recognized internationally, the levels of development may vary widely within so-called developing countries...

 without expensive training facilities to participate. Equatorial Guinea has only two pools, neither of them Olympic-sized. She had never swum in a 50-metre pool before. After the race, she commented: "It's the first time I've swum 50 metres. It was further than I thought. I was very tired."

The BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

 commented: "Bolopa and Moussambani have become two of the stars of the Sydney Olympics much like Eddie "the Eagle" Edwards became a hero at the 1988 Calgary Olympics

1988 Winter Olympics

The 1988 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event celebrated in and around Calgary, Alberta, Canada from 13 to 28 February 1988. The host was selected in 1981 after having beat Falun, Sweden and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy...

 for his brave but laughable attempts at ski-jumping." The Telegraph likewise commented that Barila had "recapture[d] the spirit of Eddie the Eagle". The Agence France-Presse

Agence France-Presse

Agence France-Presse is a French news agency, the oldest one in the world, and one of the three largest with Associated Press and Reuters. It is also the largest French news agency. Currently, its CEO is Emmanuel Hoog and its news director Philippe Massonnet...

reported that she had "gained Olympic hero status", and commented: "She brought out the spectators' affection for a courageous, have-a-go hero who dared to compete knowing she would probably be the worst-ever Olympian in that event."

Barila worked as a supermarket cashier at the time of the Games.